Best Earl Grey Tea

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Ever since I went to Iceland this past spring I have been obsessed with finding the best earl grey tea.

You
may not have previously associated earl grey tea and Iceland, but you also
may not have had the good fortune of spending time with herbalist Anna Rósa grasalæknir. She was an incredible hostess and she also kindled my appreciation for a good cup of earl grey tea.

My obsession with the best earl grey tea has led me to try several companies in search of that perfect cup.

But one day I got to thinking… could I make my own earl grey tea recipe?

Anna Rósa in a field of angelica in Iceland

What Is Earl Grey Tea?

Earl grey tea is black tea that has been flavored with the citrus fruit bergamot (Citrus bergamia)
that comes to us from Italy and other mediterranean areas. Originally
the tea may have been mixed with the actual bergamot peels.

It
took a few experiments but I was finally able to make what I consider
to be the best earl grey tea recipe. By making my own I can create one that is
strong enough to suit my tastes. Keep in mind that if you try this
recipe you could make it more or less strong depending on the amount of bergamot essential oil you use.

Making your own earl grey tea from scratch certainly isn’t as simple as asking the food replicator for tea; earl grey, hot.

However,
it does mean that you can source the highest quality ingredients from
fair trade sources to make your own amazing cup of tea.

Below I have two recipes so that you can make the best earl grey tea.

Standard Earl Grey Tea Recipe

This
is a simple way to make your own earl grey tea. By buying high quality
ingredients and being able to choose the strength of your bergamot
flavor, you'll be able to create your favorite earl grey tea.

Pour
10 -15 drops of the bergamot essential oil into a pint jar. Put a lid on
the jar and shake well to distribute the essential oil all over the
inside of the glass.

Pour
in the tea leaves. Shake well for several minutes. This tea blend can
be made into tea immediately but I like to let mine cure for a couple of
days to let the essential oils be absorbed.

Over
time the essential oils will fade and the tea will degrade. I recommend
drinking this within six months, but it won't spoil or go bad, it will
just weaken.

Rosalee's Earl Grey Tea Blend Recipe

The above recipe is for your standard earl grey. The following recipe is how I personally like to make my own earl grey tea. The vanilla and the smokey lapsang souchong add a more complex flavor while the cornflowers make it look pretty.

Pour
10 -15 drops of the bergamot essential oil into a pint jar. Put a lid on
the jar and shake well to distribute the essential oil all over the
inside of the glass.

Pour
in the teas, cornflowers and vanilla. Shake well for several minutes.
This tea blend can be made into tea immediately but I like to let mine
cure for three days to let the essential oils be absorbed.

Over
time the essential oils will fade and the tea will degrade. I recommend
drinking this within six months, but it won't spoil or go bad, it will
just weaken.

Tips On Brewing Your Earl Grey Loose Tea

When
brewing a single cup of tea I use a metal tea strainer that I bought
from Mountain Rose Herbs. You can also use specialty tea cups with
strainers, bamboo strainers or even paper strainers. Check out a bunch of different tea accessories from Mountain Rose Herbs here.
Using the links found on my site to purchase products from Mountain
Rose Herbs supports the free information on this site. Thank you!

To
brew: Use a rounded teaspoon of your earl grey mixture to every 8 oz of
water. Steep covered for 3-5 minutes depending on how strong you prefer
your tea. When done, strain off the tea and add milk or cream and honey or
sugar as preferred.

A Word On Using Essential Oils Internally

I
know a few people are going to comment that it is unsafe to use
essential oils internally. This simply isn’t true. In fact, you probably
consume essential oils in foods (with no ill effects) without even
knowing it.

That being said, I recommend a lot of caution when using essential oils internally. Here are some guidelines.

1.
You want to use pure essential oils from a reputable company. I buy
mine from Mountain Rose Herbs. There are other great companies out there
too but you’ll need to do some research if you decide to branch out. At all costs avoid buying essential oils from unethical Multi-Level-Marketing companies. Besides making me cringe at their horrible marketing
practices their oils have been shown to have synthetic ingredients. (See more about this issue here.)

2.
Do not put essential oils into water and then drink that water. Oils
and water don’t mix, which means instead of getting a diluted mixture of
essential oils you’ll get pure essential oils on your sensitive mucus
membranes. This can cause serious problems.

When
searching on the internet to see if people made their own earl grey
teas I found numerous articles with instructions to make your black tea
then add bergamot essential oil to the water. Yikes! Don’t do this.

3.
If you are still uncomfortable using essential oils internally then
this is not the recipe for you. I would also caution you to avoid earl
grey tea since most earl grey on the market is made using essential
oils.

Further Resources

There’s
lots to know about using essential oils internally and this article is
in no way a tutorial on this vast and complex subject. For more
information I recommend the following sources.

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